The writings of saint Montfort
St. Montfort's writings talk about the Catholic faith. His work is read by many people, not just the Montfortians because St. Montfort's writings are very original and always up to date. One of the important people who read his writings and lived them was Pope John Paul II. The motto used for pause "Totus tuus" comes from the motto of Saint Montfort.
St. Louis de Montfort was an influential Mariologist of the seventeenth century, known for his devotion to Mary and the dissemination of the holy rosary. There are three of Saint Montfort's most famous writings, Love of the Eternal Wisdom, True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, and The Secret of Mary.
Below is a summary of Saint Montfort's writings:
The book Love of the Eternal Wisdom provides important context for all of St. Another Louis Marie. In it he describes the relationship between God and mankind, emphasizes first and foremost God's love for humans, and plans to save them from the consequences of sin. Using many texts from Old Testament Wisdom literature. He contemplated the extraordinary desire that God had to love them and be loved by them. He, like St. Paul and St. John, seeing the Savior, Jesus Christ, as the embodiment of God's Wisdom, and applied to Christ the title “The Eternal and Incarnate Wisdom of God” – therefore “the symbol of the Eternal Wisdom in the book should be regarded as Jesus Christ Himself. In his reflection on God's love for man, St. Louis Marie chose Christ's death on the Cross as the greatest manifestation of this love, to the point where she could say: The Wisdom is the Cross, and the Cross is the Wisdom.
Making the assuming that all human beings desire happiness, and that "Wisdom" (in a natural sense) is the way to achieve this, he discusses various forms of wisdom and states that the only true wisdom is the Wisdom of God. incarnate in Jesus Christ Himself. it then becomes the life-long quest of all Christians to seek to acquire this Wisdom, or in other words, to seek to know and love Jesus Christ, the Eternal Wisdom of God. He proposes four principal to achieve this:
An ardent desire to do so
Constant prayer for this grace
“Universal” mortification
A tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin.
He claims that this fourth means (devotion to the Blessed Virgin) is the most effective way of acquiring and preserving Divine Wisdom, and it is this theme that he develops in True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin and The Secret of Mary. The third means (universal mortification) is seen as a way of participating in the Cross of Christ, by accepting our own “crosses” and so becoming more aware of the love shown by the sufferings of Christ. He develops this theme more in a Letter to the Friends of the Cross.
This is the book for which St. Louis Marie de Montfort is probably best known. It should however be read In the context of the Love of Eternal Wisdom, where he makes it plain that a “tender devotion to the Blessed Virgin” is only a means (though the most effective mean) to acquire and preserve Divine Wisdom.
In True Devotion, St. Louis Marie sets out his teachings on devotion to Mary in general and proposes a particular form of devotion, which involved total devotion or consecration of oneself to Jesus through the hands of Mary. The first part of this book is devoted to showing that devotion to Mary is not an end in itself. It is always a means of becoming more dedicated to the ministry of Jesus Christ. However, he claims, the means are necessary for this, and indeed the surest way to achieve this goal. He examines the Quality of what he calls “true” (or sincere) devotion to Mary, as opposed to false devotion. And he explained that there were many kinds of true devotion to him. But he claims, based on his own experience and reading, that he has found one form of devotion to Mary whose purpose is to bring us closer to Jesus Christ) more effective than others.
The form of devotional service to Mary to which he refers (and which he earnestly proposes to his readers) consists of total self-devotion to Jesus Christ through the hands of Mary. This total dedication he refers to as devotion and he carefully explains that, although we may speak of “devotion to Mary”, it should always be understood only as a step towards “devotion to Jesus Christ”. an explanation of what this total devotion means in practice and a description of its effect on the person doing it is meant to encourage us to embrace it. It also examines various devotional practices intended to help us live them, both “exterior” and “interior” practices, as he calls them. Among exterior practices, he talks about reciting the Rosary, a topic he discusses more fully in The Secret of the Blessed Rosary.
This form of devotion to Mary was known in the time of St. Louis Marie (and before) as “Holy Servant”, and she spends some time explaining the meaning of this phrase, insisting that, far from being forced slavery, it must be a “slavery for love”. Another phrase that is more in tune with our modern way of thinking, can easily be used in place of this.
St. Louis Marie another creation. The Secret of Mary, is a shorter presentation of many of the same things found in True Devotion.
The Secret of Mary presents almost the same thing as True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin in a shorter form. but also includes a section on the “Tree of Life”. It appears to have been written for a member (or members) of a Religious Congregation. The title shows how St. Louis Marie presents the topic: he wants to reveal the “secret” of holiness. or the “secret” to finding happiness. and that “secret” can be found in Mary and especially in the form of devotion to her which she sets out in the book.
As in True Devotion, the first part of this book deals with the need for true devotion to Mary Mother of God for real knowledge, and attachment to Jesus Christ. Again, this devotion to Mary is a means to an end and is never an end in itself, and it is necessary. simply because God Himself has chosen Mary's way to reveal Himself in Jesus Christ.
In the second part of the book, St. Louis Marie briefly examines some forms of true devotion to Mary, before presenting what she calls the “practice of perfect devotion to Mary”, which is said to be unknown to many and practiced by very few. ". This perfect service is said to consist of "surrendering as a servant to Mary, and to Jesus through Mary, and then performing all our actions with Mary, in Mary, through Mary and for Mary," referring to this as a "consecration." He went on to discuss what this meant. and in particular what does he mean by doing all our actions with Mary, in Mary, through Mary, and for Mary”.
In a sort of supplement at the end of this book, we find two very beautiful prayers: a Prayer to Jesus and a Prayer to Mary and a brief metaphor for this form of devotion, which he calls the “Tree of Life.”
The issues briefly presented in The Secret of Mary are much more developed in True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin.
One of the most honorable titles bestowed upon St. Louis Marie (‘pastor with a large rosary’) is “Apostle of the Cross and Holy Rosary.” The Rosary occupies an important place in his own spiritual life and his life. The Secret Apostolate of the Holy Rosary (as it is sometimes called) is not as original as his other books, for here it demonstrates the value of one particular devotional practice (named among others in True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin), and at the same time many borrowed from many authors.
Since he was primarily a missionary to the common people, he concentrated mainly on the poor and abandoned. He began to renew the Christian spirit within them, believing that this could be achieved by devotion to Mary, which can only bring people to Jesus and holiness. He believed that the Rosary was the great secret of knowing Mary and finding Jesus through her. He established the Rosary, wherever he preached and recited it in public every day during his mission. This book, although unpublished in his lifetime, was certainly intended for all ages, as is clear from “Little Rose” in the introduction. In the body of the book, (like the Rosary itself) divided into Decades each with ten "roses", he talks about the origins of this form of Marian devotion and the miracles in which it developed over the centuries. Well, as critics will express doubts about some of his stories, he is simply pointing out that he has quoted them from reputable authors. The rest of the book, with the power and effectiveness of the Rosary, the prayers it makes, the beauty and usefulness of meditation that accompanies it. He explained how to say the Rosary 'properly' and in the end gave some Methods of Reciting the Rosary.
The Rosary, was meant to serve as a practical apostolate, and with this in mind he added three methods for praying the Rosary, including one that he had composed for the Daughter of Wisdom. He provides two further methods in his Sermon Book, and these are included in “God Alone – The Collected Writings of St. Louis Marie de Montfort". The Appendix to the Method of the Rosary in “God Alone” adds several passages that St. Louis Marie quotes verbatim from other authors, concerning the Great Rules of the Fraternity of the Holy Rosary, the power and dignity of the Rosary and the dignity of the Hail Mary.
The original rule of the Company of Mary was probably written around 1710. Perhaps even before any priests joined St. Louis Marie in her work. This was quite typical of the general rule for Religious Congregations at that time. except for some interesting details. For example, St. Louis Marie only spoke of two vows, namely the vow of poverty and the vow of obedience. instead of the normal trilogy of poverty, chastity, and obedience.
It could be assumed that, just as he expected every priest who joined the Society of Mary to have been ordained, they were bound to chastity; but it is more likely that he emphasized poverty and obedience as essential to the freedom and availability he spoke of in His Passionate Prayer for the Missionaries. For the same reason, he insisted that members of the Maria Union should not benefit. cannot be 'placed' in a parish. should only have two houses in France, etc. Their job is to go around bringing the good news to the poor, and most of the rules have to do with directions to be followed during their missions, their Timetable during Missions, and the Rules of catechism instructions.
This Rule, together with the Passionate Prayer to Missionaries, and the Letter to the Members of the Society of Mary form the tryptic which has been accepted by the Holy See as part of the official constitution and rules of the Society of Mary today in the sense of being the source of the Rule of the Present.
Carefully explain that, although we may speak of “devotion to Mary”, this should always be understood only as a step towards “devotion to Jesus Christ”. an explanation of what this total devotion means in practice, and with a description of its effect on the person doing it is meant to encourage us to embrace it. It also examines various devotional practices intended to help us live them, both “exterior” and “interior” practices, as he calls them. Among exterior practices, he speaks of reciting the Rosary, a topic he discusses more fully in The Secret of the Blessed Rosary.
This form of devotion to Mary was known in the time of St. Louis Marie (and before) as “Holy Servant”, and she spends some time explaining the meaning of this phrase, insisting that, far from being forced slavery, it must be a “slavery for love”. Another phrase that is more in tune with our modern way of thinking, can easily be used in place of this.
St. Louis Marie another creation. The Secret of Mary, is a shorter presentation of many of the same things found in True Devotion.
From the very beginning of his priestly life, St. Louis Marie de Montfort dreamed of a 'small group of priests' who would devote themselves to the proclamation of missions to the poor under the banner of the Blessed Virgin. As time passed, his efforts for the few recruits who would work with him multiplied. This prayer, known in French as the 'Priere Embrasee' (a tempestuous prayer), composed by him, probably towards the end of his life, was the heart's cry to God to fulfill his dream. This described the kind of “apostle” he was seeking, whom he predicted would be indispensable in his so-called True Consecration. (no. 35, 45-58), “the time of the end.”
St. Louis Marie wrote several private letters during his lifetime, 34 of which (or some of them) have been preserved. Letters were written to 14 recipients, the main ones being Fr. M. Leschassier (his confessor and spiritual director), his sister Guyonne Jeanne, and Sr. Marie Louise of Jesus (Marie Louise Trichel). The letters help us to understand him as a writer and what he wrote in his works. Some of them (especially Chapters 5. 6, 8-11, and 15-16) highlight the early period of his priestly life, when he was struggling to find God's Will for him.
The Letter to the Companions of the Cross is largely a meditation on the words of Christ:
If anyone wants to be my follower. Let him leave himself and take up his cross and follow Me (Matthew 16:24; Luke 9:23).
It is addressed to the members of the association which he seems to have established in various places during his mission and presents the self-denial which Christ demands as a necessary, beneficial, and noble means of becoming a true disciple of Christ. St. Louis Marie here provides a practical “rule” for making our suffering and penance and penance a real 'follower of Christ'. It can be read along with what he says in “The Love of the Eternal Wisdom” about the third way to obtain Divine Wisdom: universal motivation.
In 1705, after being released from his position as chaplain to the "General Hospital" in Poitiers. Louis Marie begins missions in the city and suburbs of Poitiers. He began by concentrating on those districts, such as Montbemage, where ordinary people lived. He immediately had great success. but at the same time faced serious challenges, especially from the Vicar General. For peace. The bishop chose to sacrifice Louis Marie, who was forced to leave the city at the beginning of Lent 1706. Before leaving Poitiers and making a pilgrimage to Rome to meet the Pope, he wrote a circular to the parishioners where he preached. It is now known as the Letter to the Residents of Montbernage. In it, he encourages them to be true to all they have promised during his mission and asks for their prayers at a difficult time for himself.
Beginning with the words of Christ Do not fear the little flock because it has pleased your Father to bestow the kingdom upon you (Luke 12 32), St. Louis Marie applied these words to the Society of Mary. This is a short letter that is an exhortation to union members to be faithful to the spirit of evangelical poverty and to believe in God's Providence. when the letter was written, it was likely that no priests had yet joined the union, and St. Louis Marie seems to have predicted that the Church would always remain relatively small because she insisted that they not be discouraged by small numbers, she also insisted on hope and joy in the knowledge that God will keep them in His Providence.
The end of the manuscript is absent, ending in the middle of a sentence, but the ending was given (possibly by Father Gabriele Deshayes) in 1837.
This letter, together with the Worshiping Prayer and the constitution of the Missionaries of the Company of Mary, forms a triptych that has been accepted by the Holy See as part of the official Code and Constitution of the Company of Mary today in the sense that they become the source of the modern Code.
St. Louis Marie in all his mission was “to revive the Christian spirit through the renewal of the baptismal promises” (according to her earliest biographer, Joseph Grandet). Grandet added: “And to help them remember their efforts, he had the reform formula printed, and those who could write were asked to sign it” during the special ceremony that was the culmination of the mission. St. Louis Marie spoke of the consecration he proposed in his True Consecration to the Blessed Virgin as a “perfect renewal of the Baptism promise”.
Four copies of this Covenant with God have been preserved. Two of these, showing slight variations, were reproduced in God Alone – The Collected Writings of St. Louis Marie de Montfort.
In the original rule of the Daughter of Wisdom and the Society of Mary, St. Louis Marie spoke of the prayers that both Congregations should offer, but gave no further details. But we do know that he did write a manuscript version of the prescribed Morning and Evening Prayer, which was printed in 1859. The main part of the Morning Prayer is The Little Crown of the Blessed Virgin, a version that was popular in the 17th century. The Evening (or Evening) form of Prayer was also commonly used at that time, but St. Louis Marie contains several prayers (especially “O Jesus who dwells in Mary” and prayers related to the theme of rest and sleep) which are vividly described from the French School of Spirituality.
On the night of St. Louis Marie's death, a copy of the Disposition for Happy Death was found among the belongings of the missionaries who accompanied her. On the few blank pages of this booklet, Father Mulot wrote the Last Will and Covenant that the dying man dictated to him. This explains why a copy of this small work, the only one in existence today, has been preserved.
The book consists of five parts, the last three of which are of course not by St. Louis Marie, but by Pastor J. Nouet, S.J. The second part of “The vast heaven” also seems to be borrowed from someone else.
The first part, however, is about the disposition of death which is far, near and final, which is similar to the concept of preaching found in St. Louis Marie, it could be his own work.
In the final disposition, we find counsel for True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, and for renewing our Baptism Promises, themes which St. Louis Marie.
Apart from his major works (True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, the Secret of Mary, the Love of Eternal Wisdom, Letter to the Friends of the Cross, and The Secret of the Rosary), for which he is best known, and several shorter works, St. Louis Mari de Montfort is created with the authorship of a large number of Hymns of Canticles, which take up more than 800 pages in the definitive France edition of his Complete Works – almost half of the total. According to the most authoritative study, there are 164 hymns in all, most of which have 30 or more multi-lined verses, giving a total of some 24.000 lines.
The purpose of the hymns was not to provide musical interludes or even accompaniment of important sections of the Divine Liturgy, but rather they were intended as a teaching vehicle, adapted to the level of education and the understanding of the ordinary townsfolk and country people to whom St. Louis Marie preached in his Parish Mission.
To make the more memorable and attractive to the ordinary people, St. Louise Marie deliberately set them to catchy and memorable tunes already familiar to his audience – often the dance-tunes popular in his day – a surprisingly modern touch for one who was not exactly in favour of dances and balls.
